Over €1bn in GLAS payments made, says agriculture minister

Green Low Carbon Agri-Environment Scheme launched in 2015

Payments to date under the Green Low Carbon Agri-Environment Scheme (GLAS) have exceeded the €1 billion mark, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, has announced.

Since the launch of GLAS in 2015, the scheme has been embraced by Irish farmers with almost 50,000 GLAS contracts currently active. GLAS delivers for Irish agriculture and our environment by supporting over 30 actions designed to benefit biodiversity, climate change mitigation and improve water quality.

Some of the key environmental measures carried out include:

•GLAS farmers manage over 250,000 hectares of Low Input Permanent Pasture,

•Over 60,000 hectares of Traditional Hay Meadows and

•Protect the quality of over 14,000km of watercourses.

•The support of the management and grazing of over 228,000 hectares of commonage and successfully protects rare breed populations and bird, bee and bat habits.

GLAS supports farm incomes with total payments to date to Irish farmers reaching €1.006bn. GLAS farmers receive up to €5,000 per annum under the general scheme with provision for payment up to €7,000 where the farmer is positioned to give exceptional environmental returns.

Almost 3,400 GLAS participants quality for the GLAS PLUS extra payment. GLAS has also provided a knowledge resource to Irish farmers with training undertaken by all GLAS participants.

Minister McConalogue was joined by former Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Simon Coveney, who initially launched GLAS, in marking this milestone. Minister McConalogue paid tribute to another former Minister Michael Creed who also ensured that GLAS was success.

Minister McConalogue said: “GLAS has been a two-fold success. It has helped Irish farmers produce in an efficient and sustainable manner while supporting incomes and it has also protecting and enhancing our biodiversity. Our experience will help us build for the future and help us identify what value we can bring to our next national agri-environmental scheme. Farm incomes have been supported under GLAS with over €1 billion paid directly to farmers to date. The development of the new CAP is an exciting opportunity to build on this success and to deliver on new and challenging targets.

“Both Ministers Coveney and Creed played a key role in making GLAS a success. GLAS has been a tremendous scheme and as part of the next CAP programme, I am committed to bringing and even more ambitious agri-environmental scheme that will support our farmers and protect our environment.”

Details of the Department’s Agriculture, Food and the Marine Action Plan 2021 can be found at gov.ie - Statement of Strategy 2021 - 2024 (www.gov.ie)

Minister McConalogue also reminds all interested parties that a public consultation on the draft CAP plan is currently open for submissions.

The mailbox CAPStrategicPlan@Agriculture.gov.ie remains available for written submissions relating to the public consultation until the closing date of 27th August 2021. Submissions may also be made via the survey link: ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/runner/IEdraftCSP2023-2027interventions